Tilley Endurables Clothing Review for Travel

Traveling with Tilley: Why We Love Our Tilley Endurables Hats

31/7/2013

We're traveling with Tilley Endurables -and we're taking them all the way around the world

With Cindy, Tilley Associate Extraordinaire

There’s nothing I love more than getting my backpack out a week (or two!) before a trip, grasping my packing list (you all know how I feel about lists), and laying out my clothing for a trip. I envision all the exciting scenes where I’ll show off my little black dress and the hikes I’ll embark on in a new pair of trail runners.

Every chance to travel is precious one and I want to enjoy every step of the process, from booking tickets and reading guidebooks to sorting through photos and distributing the souvenirs. It always pains me to hear people say how much they hate packing. Packing should be easy, uncomplicated, and stress free.

Investing in a high quality, long lasting, versatile, and comfortable travel wardrobe you love is a fun and practical way to tackle packing challenges and have a more enjoyable travel experience.

We are so proud to partner with Canadian made Tilley Endurables to build the perfect travel wardrobe for our upcoming round the world trip and demonstrate to our readers that packing can be a pleasure, not a chore.

With stops in New York City, Paris, Brussels, Liege, Bruges, Istanbul, Bangkok, Mandalay, Bagan, Yangon, Singapore, Sydney, Melbourne, and San Francisco, our round –the-world trip is a real packing challenge – how could we possibly find pieces to work so many different locations and climates? Complicating the matter is that we’re going for an ultra-light approach: just one carryon bag each, under 15lbs. Fortunately, Tilley didn’t shrink from the challenge!

I love that Tilley makes clothing for all body shapes, with sizes going up to 20 or 3XL. I love that all their products (except the socks!) are made in Canada and that they offer on the spot, in house tailoring and alterations. While most clothing comes in a wide range of neutrals, they do offer colorful and decorative options – there’s a blazing red Tilley hat, a brightly colored, flowered shirt dress, and rainbow of cardigans to choose from.

Best of all, they are extremely light weight, easy to hand wash, and will dry overnight without wrinkles. This is exactly the kind of clothing that we need on our trip!For a sneak peak of what’s going to be in our packs, we'll be reviewing a few pieces of Tilley gear in upcoming posts. We start however, with the most famous item, known the world over:

The Tilley Hat

The beautiful TH9 Women’s Hemp Hat

Vanessa
Having a Tilley hat feels like being inducted into an exclusive club of legendary travelers and globetrotters (and officially gives me something in common with Prince Phillip!) A good hat offers protection from sun, the elements, and insects. Tilley makes dozens of different hats with different styles, materials, and purposes, so I was thrilled that store associate extraordinaire Cindy was able to help narrow down my choices, showing me several lightweight models with natural, breathable fabric. I settled on this stylish hemp hat, as it was my favorite style and had the more natural fit for my head. I love that it came with extra hat bands so I could change up my look and the chocolate brown color was my favourite.

Am I tired? upset? NO! This is proper hat sizing technique!

Ryan
There were so many hats to choose from. Thankfully Cindy was there to help me narrow things down and keep me focused. She knew my size right away which impressed me, and immediately led me over to 2 different hats she thought would work for where we were going (and had already picked a favourite). Before I decided, I had to try on others, but wouldn't you know it, I picked the one that Cindy had chosen. She just knew. I would come to rely on her throughout the afternoon at Tilley. Anytime I wasn't sure, I'd ask her. She always just knew.

My new chapeau is the Organic Cotton AIRFLO® Hat. I have worn it camping, on walks, working in the garden, and in the pouring rain putting it through its paces. It wears well, it dries fast, and it fits like a glove - well, a glove that was made for the head. I love this hat.

Tilley hats come with a lifetime guarantee against wearing out and they also offer insurance against loss and theft. Ultra durable, easy to clean, guaranteed to float, with SPF 50 and with a secret hidden pocket, I can honestly say that there’s nothing I would change about my hat selection. I’m looking forward to wearing it in SouthEast Asia and Australia as part of my ongoing battle to avoid the sun!

Update!!! Curious to see how our hats looked on our round-the-world trip? Here we are outside Fort Mandalay, Myanmar, with our hats shielding us from the 40 degree heat!

Tilley Endurable hats hemp round the world trip

Staying cool and stylish in the Myanmar sun.

As always, I welcome and encourage your comments. What piece of clothing is a must-pack, the one thing you can't live without?

If you enjoyed this article, you'll also like:
Anywhere in the World with Carry-on
Ten Tips for Keeping Your Carry-on Baggage Safe
Lessons from the Occasional Business Traveler

19 Comments

Mary Calculated Traveller link

31/7/2013 11:41:51 pm

You'll love the hats. Best purchase I ever made! I actually own 2...because I couldn't decide! They also wash really well.

Vanessa

1/8/2013 01:30:50 am

Thanks Mary! There were some awesome hats there for cooler/damper weather that we really loved (but would have been too heavy for our trip), so I can totally see how people own more than one hat! The plaid hat Ryan is modeling is a heavier, coated cotton material, so it would be perfect (he says!) for golfing in the mists of Scotland!

Lance | Trips By Lance link

1/8/2013 06:19:07 am

I'll be interested to follow this packing adventure. I'm not a big hat wearer. Well, I wear baseball caps at home but hardly ever travel with them. I've always thought I couldn't pull off this kind of hat. But as I get closer to 40 maybe I should grow up a bit and stop wearing baseball caps! Ryan is looking good!

Ryan link

1/8/2013 06:54:08 am

I *DO* look good! :)
Seriously, these hats are fantastic. And you could pull it off. I have been wearing mine all the time since I got it.

2/8/2013 07:34:03 am

One thing I learned is that subtle differences in design can make a huge difference on how a hat fits and feels. I liked the first hat I tried on, but then I tried on "MY" hat and I knew I had a winner.

Pam

1/8/2013 07:49:54 am

I will definitely be following your trip - my lifelong dream is to do what you are doing - but by cruise ship :) But ALWAYS with a Tilley! I've had mine now for 8 years and it looks as perfect as the day I got it. And it's never just a "hat" - it's always the "Tilley Hat" :) Congrats on your trip and have lots of fun!!!!

2/8/2013 07:36:32 am

Thanks Pam!! I'm so glad your Tilley has endured for so long! I never knew what a strong community Tilley Hat owners were until I had one o my own!

I'd love to hear more about round the world cruise - you will totally get there one day! (I fear my motion sickness would scare me off a bit!)

Kristy Graham

1/8/2013 08:20:18 am

My dream is to go around the world too! It will be interesting to follow you! I have been wearing Tilley Hats about 10 years. Mu hisband and I own several.They are fabulous!!! I never leave home without one...seriously...

2/8/2013 07:38:32 am

10 years! You're beating Pam (from the comment above!). When I look at most of my wardrobe, there's not a lot that's more than a few years old, let alone 10, so it's reassuring to have something that's durable, of quality.

Mike (Nomadic Texan) link

2/8/2013 01:45:15 am

Vanessa,
Congratulations on the Tilley partnership. I am fortunate enough to share a love for Tilley Hats, as we have discussed before. I know that you both will thoroughly enjoy your new headgear and its protective abilities. Welcome to the team! By the way Lance I am well past 40 and have no issues wearing the hts! Ha!
Mike

2/8/2013 07:41:02 am

Thank you so much Mike! Coming from the heat of Texas, I think you are an absolute authority on a good, protective hat! I'm so fair, and I burn so easily, that having a hat isn't an option for me, but I'm glad to have one that I LIKE! I'll want to wear it, instead of feeling like I HAVE to.

Freya link

3/8/2013 03:55:49 am

Congratulations, I love Tilley hats.

6/8/2013 06:46:49 am

Thank you!!

Christine

4/8/2013 04:38:08 am

Are you going to get, or did you get, Tilley clothing other than the hats? I'm curious about how you are going to achieve your 15 lb limit.

6/8/2013 06:49:49 am

Hi Christine. We do have other items of clothing from Tilley that we are taking with us on our trip and we'll be reviewing about one piece a week. We imposed the 15lb limit on luggage because one of the airlines we are taking has a 15lb carry on limit. Some of our strategies include choosing a travel bag that is very low in weight (we're using Osprey Porter 46, which weights about 1.2kg, one of the lightest bags on the market) and we're only taking a few outfits each, but using Tilley products to easily mix and match. Some of the Tilley items are also quite versatile (such as zip off, 4 length pants and a short/skirt with a zip off panel).

6/8/2013 09:44:13 am

Thank you. I plan to get a pair of the Tilley 4 length pants for that reason! And love the Tropical Blend Expedition Skirt for hot weather. We're planning a trip to Thailand, so clothes for hot weather will be important. And want to travel light. I look forward to the rest of your reviews.

6/8/2013 10:02:26 am

I'm also thinking of hot weather items for Thailand! I like the 4 length pant because it gives the capri option - sometimes you just want to be a bit more covered than shorts allow, but with something lighter than pants.

6/8/2013 10:20:33 am

Do keep the rules for Thai temples and palaces in mind. From what I've read, if you are wearing shorts, culottes, skorts, capris, you will need to rent a sarong/skirt to cover up. For the guys, shorts are usually not allowed, and they can rent baggy pants to cover up. The rent is cheap and again, from what I've read, you are charged a deposit and get most or all of it back if you return the clothing.
http://www.travelservicebangkok.com/uploads/pics/Dresscode_Tempel_14.jpg

6/8/2013 10:41:05 am

Thanks for the tips! I always carry a sarong with me and wear longer skirts, but I hadn't thought about men with shorts. All the more reason to wear light weight, breathable pants!